Page 45 of One for the Money
Immediately, I look for Quinton, only to find the wheel empty. Knives are embedded in the surface, but he’s nowhere to be found.
And neither is Matteo.
A spotlight turns on and lands in the center of the ring, where, above our heads, Quinton hangs. Thick rings are pierced into the flesh of his stomach, lifting him off the ground. His head is thrown back, and he looks like he’s being resurrected, like he’s a wayward soul floating out of his body.
For a moment, the potential injury flees my mind, and I marvel at the beauty in the way his body hangs.
The blade of a sword is tattooed down the center of his chest, all the way down his abdomen, the hilt stretching between his nipples. Four rings, two on each side of the blade, are hooked to individual thick ropes.
Matteo stands beside him, his face blank.
“You thought you could escape?” He booms a laugh, walking around Quinton in a circle. The Alpha is still suspended, his head thrown back and his arms hanging loose. He looks beautiful, like a fallen angel, and doesn’t seem to be in pain, but I still can’t hide the thread of worry that thrums through me.
Body suspension isn’t something to be done lightly, and my doctor brain is having a hard time appreciating the skill of the situation because the potential injuries are swirling in my head.
“Quick Cut here thought he could be free of me,” Matteo calls out. “And for that, he’s signed his soul away.”From somewhere behind his back, Matteo produces a long sword.
My stomach clenches, and I reach out for Jude’s hand reflexively. He squeezes mine in his and doesn’t let go. The contact is like an electric jolt through my skin, and I resist the urge to sigh into it.
Matteo leans close to Quinton and whispers, “Open wide, Alpha,” in a voice that has me clenching my thighs.
Holy shit. That shouldn’t have been so hot. This is dangerous, and I’m over here getting slick between my thighs.
Quinton’s jaw drops, and Matteo climbs onto a stool. Slowly, he feeds the sword into Quinton’s waiting mouth.
“This isn’t something that’s done,” Jude whispers to me. “A sword swallower not in control of their sword can get seriously injured. Plus, the potential to swing with the suspension. But these two have worked together so long and trust each other enough that they can do what no one else can.”
It’s an incredibly dangerous portrait, the two of them. An Alpha being hung from the ceiling by skin, his head thrown back and arms spread wide like he’s floating to the heavens, with a sword down his throat. Matteo stands beside him, his hand lightly wrapped around Quinton’s neck, no doubt keeping his body steady.
After a few moments, Matteo carefully removes the sword and presses a button. Quinton’s body lowers to the ground, and when his feet touch down, the rope must go entirely slack because he falls to his knees.
Matteo rushes him, face full of concern, but the moment he gets near Quinton, the Alpha snags him around the neck and pulls him nose to nose.
“You’ll never win, Maestro.” Quinton’s voice is rough, but steady. “Try harder to break me next time, will you?”
“Gladly.”
Their lips crash together, the audience hops to their feet, jumping and screaming, and I breathe easily for the first time since they stepped into the ring.
No fucking wonder they need a doctor on staff.
Chapter 17
“You won’t even see her,”Dario reminds me as we finish up our makeup. He grins at me through the mirror, the reflection of his reflection in my mirror making my head ache as my brain tries to process the image. “Just pretend she’s not there.”
Easy for him to say.
Since he went shopping with her, he’s been trying to convince me she’s not like other Omegas. That our experience with our dad doesn’t need to color every interaction I have with her.
He’s fighting a losing battle, but I’ve given up on trying to convince him of that. It won’t make a difference. Now I just ignore when he chatters on about her.
Except she’s going to be in the ring tonight watching our routine. And that makes me anxious. The idea of her eyes tracking my every move makes me feel like I’m going to crawl out of my skin.
Quinton and Matteo finish up their act to uproarious applause, and Dario and I slip into the ring. Jude is in the middle, announcing our act, but my eyes are trained on theOmega doctor who has upended our little family since her arrival a few weeks ago.
Alex doesn’t look the part of a doctor tonight, dressed in a cute and casual outfit that shows off some of her soft skin. It’s hard not to notice how pretty she is, how delicate and breakable she seems.
But it’s a trick of the designation—an evolutionary measure to trap Alphas into taking care of them.
